The tears flowed as freely as the champagne as Huddersfield badminton star Marcus Ellis claimed a brilliant bronze medal at the Rio Olympics.
The 26-year-old from Bolster Moor and men’s doubles partner Chris Langridge beat world No3 Chinese pairing Hong Wei and Chai Biao 21-18, 19-21, 21-10 in the third-place play-off match.
It was stirring stuff, with Ellis and Langridge playing well above their world No22 ranking and thrilling their friends and family both in Brazil and back at home.
A beaming Ellis said: “I can’t believe it, this is just incredible.
“I think it shows when you get to an Olympic tournament you can rip up the rankings because we knew, coming out here, that we could compete with everybody.
“It was tough in the semi-finals when the other Chinese pairing beat us – they were better on the day – but we had never played this pair before and it was all fresh.
“I’m just so happy we have done it for ourselves and it’s massive for the sport, so I’m so proud we can be a part of it.”
Langridge, at 31 unlikely to be competing at this level by the next Games, credited Ellis for staying calm when they raced into a 17-10 lead in the decider.
“I was getting nervous and thinking too much about every point, but thankfully Marcus stayed cool,” he said.
“This really is the most incredible feeling because we have worked so hard and we’re just so, so happy.”
The last Britons to collect an Olympic badminton medal were Nathan Robertson and Gail Emms in the Athens Games mixed doubles.
Ellis’s parents, John and Sheila, were inundated with messages of congratulation after watching the final on TV at home.
See how it all happened in pictures:
In tears at the finish, Sheila said: “We could have done without it going to three because our nerves were shot to bits!
“But in that third game they really nailed it and we were just as speechless as them at the end.
“We are just so proud.
“Just getting to the Olympics was such a thrill for all of us, but we never imagined at that stage that we’d come to this.
“It’s fantastic for Marcus and Chris, it’s fantastic for English badminton and it’s wonderful for all the people around here who have helped and supported him over the years.
“He’ll now be ‘Marcus Ellis from Huddersfield, Olympic medalist’ for the rest of his life and that just sounds so, so good.”
Ellis, based at the National Badminton Centre in Milton Keynes and a former student at Clough Head, Colne Valley High and New College, took up the sport as a seven-year-old at the sports centre in Slaithwaite.
“This will be marvellous for his career and for the game and, as Chris has shown, Marcus could well have another Olympics in him,” added Sheila.
“We’ll definitely celebrate this. The champagne is out and it’s not my first!
“Within 10 minutes of the match finishing I’d had 60 messages on my phone and there’s no way I can respond to them all straight away, but it’s just so lovely that people have followed his progress, been so supportive and taken the trouble to get in touch.
“This is really the answer to our prayers and he thoroughly deserves it because he has put all the hard work in over the years.
“It’s just amazing, wonderful, and we can’t wait now to see him and Chris on the podium for the medal ceremony. That will be so special.”
Dad John, who first took his youngest son – the eldest, James, also watched the bronze play-off – to the Colne Valley club and watched him hit his first shuttle 20 years ago, was also delighted.
“It’s absolutely fantastic for Marcus and Chris,” he said.
“We always knew they could do it, but the Chinese are always formidable opponents and you’ve got to play well.
“A few little errors let the Chinese back in to win the second game, but in the third I think they showed the pressure, which is unusual for athletes from China, and Marcus and Chris just ran away with it.
“We just feel tremendous. It’s brilliant.”
